Making and Homemade Gazpacho from Fresh Tomatoes!

Making and freezing your own Gazpacho gives you a
great tasting, healthy treat you can enjoy. No store bought Gazpacho
compares with the taste of this classic Spanish soup made from your own
tomatoes from your garden or fresh-picked from a local farm!

Unfortnately, no,
you can't can it (it will turn to glop, and even with a pressure canner,
it's still very low acid). You'll have to enjoy it fresh.

Here's how to do it, in easy steps and
completely illustrated. This method is so easy, ANYONE can do
this! It's a great thing to do with your kids!

Ingredients

Tomatoes - 6 large ripe tomatoes, peeled and chopped

1 purple
onion, finely chopped

1 cucumber, peeled, seeded, chopped

1 sweet red bell pepper (or green) seeded and chopped

2 tablespoons tomato paste

2 stalks celery, chopped

1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1-2 Tbsp chopped fresh
parsley

4 cups tomato juice

2 Tbsp chopped fresh chives

1 clove garlic, minced

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

1/4 cup olive oil

2 Tbsp
freshly squeezed lemon juice

2 teaspoons sugar

Salt
and fresh ground pepper to taste

6 or more drops of Tabasco
sauce to taste

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

Equipment

Pint (or smaller) jars or containers

1 large pot.

Large spoons and ladles

Process - How to Make Gazpacho from Fresh Tomatoes

Step 1 - Selecting the tomatoes

It's fun to go pick your own and you
can obviously get better quality tomatoes!

At right is a
picture of tomatoes from my garden - they are so much better than
anything from the grocery store. And if you don't have enough, a
pick-your-own farm is the pace to go! At right are 4 common
varieties that will work:

Top left: Beefsteak

Top
right: Lemon Boy, yellow

Bottom left: Roma, paste-type

Bottom right: Better Boy

The picture at left shows the best variety of tomato to use: Roma;
also called paste tomatoes. they have fewer sides, thicker,
meatier walls, and less water.

Also, you don't want
mushy, bruised or rotten tomatoes!

Step 2 - Removing the tomato skins

Here's a trick you may not
know: put the tomatoes, a few at a time in a large pot of boiling
water for no more than 1 minute (30 - 45 seconds is usually enough)

then....

Plunge them into a waiting bowl of ice water.

This makes the skins slide right off of the tomatoes! If you
leave the skins in, they become tough and chewy in the sauce, not
very pleasant.

Step 3 - Removing seeds and water

After you have peeled the
skins off the tomatoes, cut the tomatoes in half. Now we need
to remove the seeds and excess water.

Step 4 - Squeeze of the seeds and water

Just like it
sounds: wash your hands then squeeze each tomato and use your finger
or a spoon to scoop and shake out most of the seeds. You don't
need to get fanatical about it; removing just most will do. Another
way to do it is to cut each tomato in half, across it, instead of
lengthwise. Then just shake the seeds and juice out.

Step 5 - Drain and dice the tomatoes

Toss the squeezed (Squozen?
:) tomatoes into a colander or drainer, while you work on others.
This helps more of the water to drain off. You may want to
save the liquid: if you then pass it through a sieve, screen or
cheesecloth, you have fresh tomato juice; great to drink cold or use
in cooking!

Next chop them up - I like 1/2 inch size
cubes.

Step 6 - Separate the chopped tomatoes into 2 parts

Keep
about 1/2 cup apart to add at the end. Put the rest into the
food processor, chopped or blender.

Step 6 - Prep the other stuff for the food processor

I use an
electric chopper (food processor) to dice the seasonings fairly
fine, about 1/8 inch cubes. You can separate about 1 cup of
it before it gets too finely pureed, so you can add it at the end to
give it some chunky buts.

1 purple onion, finely chopped

1 cucumber, peeled, seeded, chopped

1 sweet red bell
pepper (or green) seeded and chopped

2 tablespoons tomato paste

2 stalks celery,
chopped

1/3 cup
chopped fresh cilantro

1-2 Tbsp chopped fresh
parsley

2 Tbsp chopped fresh chives

1 clove
garlic, minced

Step 7 - Mix ingredients in the pot or large bowl

Mix and
the put them

Add the seasonings and mix well:

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

1/4
cup olive oil

2 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice

2 teaspoons sugar

Salt and fresh ground pepper to taste

6 or more drops of Tabasco sauce to taste

1 teaspoon
Worcestershire sauce

Taste and if you like it
spicier, you can more Tabasco.

And if you like your
Gazpacho thick, add more tomato paste. If it is too thick, add
tomato juice!

Step 8 - Fill the jars, ziploc bags or other containers and
refrigerate

Other Equipment:

Lid lifter
- to remove lids from the pot of boiling water
(sterilizing )

Lid - disposable - you may
only use them once

Ring -
holds the lids on the jar until after the jars cool - then
you don't need them

Canning jar funnel
- to fill the jars

Summary - Cost of Making Homemade Gazpacho - makes 9 pints

Item

Quantity

Cost in 2004

Source

Subtotal

Tomatoes

20 -
25 lbs (to make about 16 cups of prepared tomato)

free from the garden, or $0.50 cents at a PYO

Garden

$0.00

Canning jars (pint size, wide mouth), includes lids and rings

9 jars

$8.00/dozen

Grocery stores, like Publix, Kroger and Safeway and local "big box"
stores; sometimes Big Lots and even hardware stores

$6.00

seasoning

See step 7

$2.00?

Grocery stores, like Publix, Kroger and Safeway and local "big box"
stores

$2.00

Sala mix

1
packet

$4.00
per package

Grocery stores, like Publix, Kroger and Safeway and local "big box"
stores; sometimes Big Lots and even hardware stores

Total

$8.00 total or about $0.95 per pint INCLUDING the jars - which
you can reuse!

* - This assumes you already have the pots, pans, ladles, and
reusable equipment. Note that you can reuse the jars! Many
products are sold in jars that will take the lids and rings for
canning. For example, Classico salsa is in quart sized jars
that work with Ball and Kerr lids and rings

This is the same type of standard canner that my grandmother used to make everything from applesauce to jams and jellies to tomato and spaghetti sauce. This complete kit includes everything you need and lasts for years: the canner, jar rack, jar grabber tongs, lid lifting wand, a plastic funnel, labels, bubble freer. It's much cheaper than buying the items separately. You'll never need anything else except jars & lids (and the jars are reusable)! There is also a simple kit with just the canner and rack, and a pressure canner, if you want to do vegetables (other than tomatoes). To see
more canners, of different styles, makes and prices, click here!
Don't forget the Ball Blue Book!

Lids, Rings, Jars, mixes, pectin, etc.

Need lids, rings and replacement jars? Or pectin to make jam,
spaghetti sauce or salsa mix or pickle mixes? Get them all here, and
usually at lower prices than your local store!

Want to make a donation?
PickYourOwn.org does not charge either farmers or consumers! I do all
of the programming, web design and updates myself. If you'd like to make a
donation to help me pay to keep the website going, please make a donation to me
at Benivia through our secure donation processor. Just click the button
below and follow the instructions: